


The Masquerade

by RiHouston



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-11
Updated: 2016-08-11
Packaged: 2018-08-08 03:19:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7741351
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RiHouston/pseuds/RiHouston
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A writing prompt from a friend before Dragon Age Inquisition released but at the time everyone was buzzing with news of a ball being in the game.  I took off with the idea of what I thought my soon to be created Inquisitor, Mage Laela Trevelyan, would do during such a grand occasion.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Masquerade

Laela Trevelyan gathered the voluminous skirt in her hands holding it up carefully to keep it from dragging in the dirt as fat wet drops slowly started to fall. She was hurrying as well as she could manage, while trying to keep the dress from being ruined before she reached the Keep and without the light of the moon she was having trouble seeing. It had been poor timing that the messenger she had been expecting the past two days would show up the night the masquerade ball was being held to honor the visiting dignitaries. Laela had gone down to the Keep's gatehouse to meet with the messenger and the meeting had lasted a long while, long enough for the weather to turn bad and the hour to grow late. The information the messenger had delivered was troubling and the Inquisitor spent a long while conferring and planning the Inquisition's next move. After composing a few letters for the messenger to deliver and instructing the messenger on what needed to be done, Laela was finally able to rejoin her companions at the Keep. 

It wouldn't have been so bad if Laela hadn't already been dressed for the masquerade ball that was being held at Skyhold to honor the visiting dignitaries. She had been looking forward to this night; all day she had been eager and unable to keep still as the hours slowly passed by. After dressing into the beautiful gown she had picked out and donning a decorated mask, she headed to the great hall only to find a guard waiting to inform her that the messenger had arrived. Now as she hurried up the gently sloping road towards the keep in the dark, the sky had grown dark and the dirt road was quickly growing wet and thick with mud as the rain suddenly picked up. Storm clouds blocked the moon's light though she could make out the Keep's bright lights that shined in the distance. Laela stumbled over a branch underfoot which she picked up and used magic to light the end of it on fire. At least now she was afforded enough light to not stumble on any other unexpected items in her path, though holding the stick meant that one side of her gown was now dragging in the mud. Her once carefully styled curls set in her hair were now gone as the rain soaked hair was now plastered to her head. Blast it! She cursed to herself as she continued trying to make her way to the keep. The rain was now coming down so hard that she had to seek shelter with the footing becoming too difficult to make any headway on the road. Spying the smithy's forge close by, she headed towards it, the branch's magical fire still burning steadily in spite of the downpour. Stepping into the covered area of the forge, she looked around at her surrounding with the lit branch providing the only light. The fires had been banked and the usually warm and boisterous forge was silent and cold. As she made her way a little further inside, she turned back to look outside at the deluge coming down, the road was a muddy mess. Even though the keep was close, it may as well have been miles away. Laela set the branch on a large anvil to keep the light in the otherwise dark place as she moved over to sit at a bench. The hand still gripping the skirt in a deathlike vice was also holding the ribbons of her mask. She carefully let go of the ruined skirt and held the mask gently in her hands as she sat down at the bench to look at it. The once beautifully decorated mask was now falling apart. The bright green and blue peacock feathers were wet and broken and the amber beads were starting to escape from the wires that they had been carefully threaded through. Laela brushed her fingers gently over the mask as tears stung her eyes and she admonished herself for being so pitiful. With all of the atrocities she witnessed happening in the world, a ruined gown and mask was a foolish thing to be sad about. It was only a silly frivolous masquerade ball. She mentally chastised herself for being so upset as a tear trailed down her cheek and dripped on to the mask. Gently she brushed the tear lightly away from the mask as she tried to smooth down the errant beads that were close to falling off as a few more tears ran hotly down her face. Nearby someone cleared their throat startling her from her moment of self pity. Instinctively, she stood up quickly swiping to remove evidence of any tears or weakness while letting the delicate mask drop forgotten to the ground. An aura of protection quickly surrounded her as she stood to face the intruder. The person was cautious as they stepped into the light allowing her to see them, their armor gleamed as the fire's light caught it and Laela relaxed a little seeing that it was her Tactics Adviser.

He broke the silence first, "I am sorry to have disturbed you Inquisitor. I saw someone with a torch headed here and I came to make sure everything was alright." 

She looked over at Cullen now that he was standing more fully in the firelight where she could see him. Her eyes widened when she realized he was soaked from the downpour as well. She felt guilty at having drawn him out on such a miserable night. Straightening her back, she immediately dropped the aura she had conjured around herself knowing that he could sense it with his Templar training. "I am sorry you had to come out in this," she waved her hand to indicate the storm, "It would have been wiser for me to have stayed at the gate and wait the storm out. I-" she paused a brief moment mentally chiding herself for being so foolish, "I thought I could make it before the storm blew in fully. I should have known better." She smoothed her hands over her ruined gown looking over at the Commander apologetically.

Cullen watched the Inquisitor as she regained her composure before him; had he not witnessed her earlier, he wouldn't have known that there was anything wrong. Standing there soaking wet, her hair and dress both plastered to her, she tried to maintain what dignity she had and he didn't want to take that from her. Thunder started to rumble across the sky as it was punctuated by lightning. "Well, it appears you found shelter in time. It seems like the worse of the storm has arrived." He tried to make light of the situation they had found themselves in.

The smile she gave him didn't reach her eyes, "Lucky me." She gave a small laugh. "Well, it seems as though we are both stuck out here for a little while. We might as well be comfortable." She sat back down on the bench while Cullen stood watching her. She was cold, but she wouldn't give in to shivering. She had made such a mess of the entire night, but she felt worse that she dragged another person into it as well. If only she hadn't been so selfish.

Breaking through the uncomfortable silence that was starting to settle between them, Cullen quietly said, "It is a shame you are missing the ball."

Laela looked down at her hands as she replied, "It wasn't so much the dancing that I was looking forward to the most," she tried to change the direction her thoughts were running in to focus on him, "but it appears that I am not the only one missing the revelry tonite." She glanced up at Cullen apologetically.

He smiled at her, "I didn't plan on attending the festivities. Instead I thought I would use the time to get caught up on some work." 

The Inquisitor shook her head at the man, "You really do need to leave that war room every now and then and learn how to have a bit of fun." The man was so serious all the time, she shouldn't have been surprised that he hadn't planned on attending the frivolous event. 

He inclined his head towards her in acknowledgement. "Seeing as you weren't planning on dancing, what made you want to attend the masquerade?" Cullen was curious as to why she had been upset earlier when he first came upon her at the forge but didn't want to ask directly.

Looking down at her hands once more, Laela's voice grew quiet and thoughtful, "I think...that is, the thing I was looking forward to-" she stopped and closed her eyes briefly before looking over at him. He had come out in the rain because of her, she decided to be honest with him since he deserved that much at least, "I am sure you know of my upbringing before I was sent to the Circle?" She saw him nod before she continued, "I can almost remember parties like these, ones that I went to with my family. The gowns, the people, the dancing, the laughter, what it felt like to be part of something...special," a thoughtful look crossed her face as she thought of her parents now ghosts in her memories, she couldn't even remember what they looked like any more, "I remember those things like a forgotten dream whose image fades and is harder to conjure as time passes. I believe what I looked forward to most this evening was to be able to remember them once more." 

Cullen hadn't expected her answer to be so heartfelt or personal. When he entered the forge after running through the downpour to find her there, he had been irritated at the inconvenience she had caused him. What kept him from telling her so immediately was seeing her look small and lost as she sat on the bench looking down at her ruined gown and mask. At first he thought she was upset that she had ruined her attire, but he now understood what had moved her to tears. He walked towards her and knelt down in front of her picking up the mask that was lying forgotten on the ground. It had broken in two and the wiring that held the beads were now loosened as some of the beads had fallen off it. He lightly brushed away the dirt that had fallen on it and set it carefully down on the bench beside Laela. Looking up at her, he held out his hand for her to take, "Would you give me the honor of this dance?" He had wanted to see her smile, but instead she looked down at him puzzled.

Narrowing her eyes suspiciously at the man kneeling before her, she had no idea what to make of his gesture towards her. Rather than amused, she felt wary and simply answered, "There isn't any music." 

Undeterred, Cullen kept his hand held out before him as he stood up and started softly singing a tune he knew well. He saw the surprise on the Inquisitor's face as she watched him for a moment before allowing herself a small smile. Her hand hovered over his for a heartbeat before she gently laid her hand in his. He took her hand firmly in his as she stood up with him. He sang as he danced with her, spinning her around as she moved along side him, their fingers interlocked keeping them together as they moved to the song's rhythm. The song he chose was a song that told of loss, it told of things not meant to be, but it also spoke of hope of things yet to come. It was a song sung to children, usually by mothers or wet nurses to comfort them and to give them hope. He wasn't sure if it was a song Laela was familiar with or remembered until he heard her voice join his as she hummed along as their dance continued.

Laela was surprised at how graceful the ex-templar was as he spun her around. When he asked her to dance, she thought he might be making fun of her. She had admitted to him something that she never spoke of to anyone else, but when he started to sing she realized that his offer was sincere and she let go of her cynicism to enjoy the moment. She was a little clumsy with the dancing having not used her childhood lessons in so long whereas the commander was graceful in his movements as his voice sang in perfect tune. As they danced, she felt lighter than she had before he had arrived at the forge. As he placed his hand lightly on her hip before twirling her away once more, she suddenly felt very aware of Cullen. His gloved hand in hers, their fingers intertwined as they danced in time with the music, his warm breath on her ear and neck every time he held her to him, the way he watched her as she spun away and back towards him. Her face felt flushed from the exertion and having the commander's undivided attention on her. Her feet and head both felt light, as though she were made of air and the only thing tethering her to this world was Cullen's hand in hers. His hand gently squeezed hers before he twirled her once more away before pulling her back towards him. She realized he was no longer singing, though she didn't know how long they had been dancing. Laela stopped suddenly with Cullen's arm still circled around her waist and her hand in his. He reached up with his free hand to lightly brush away an errant strand of hair, now dried that had fallen onto her face. He had an intent look on his face and the frown lines had nearly disappeared as he watched her, waiting. She saw a slight smile on his lips and she noticed the scar on his lip that took her attention for a moment while she stood there nearly breathless in his arms feeling as though all of this were a dream. His fingers gently squeezed hers as he inclined his head forward, his eyes focused on hers. Tilting her head up towards his, her eyes fluttered closed when she felt his lips brush gently across hers. It was a soft sweet meeting of lips that made her heart beat more quickly and her face flush. A sudden flash of lightning punctuated by the thunder's loud boom jolted through her. Opening her eyes at the unexpected interruption, she saw the look of surprise on Cullen's face and she took a step back away from him. The dream had been shattered and Laela was unsure if she had imagined it all, but her lips still felt the gentle touch of his. Her eyes widened in shock as she put a hand over her mouth. Did she imagine the look in his eyes? She had kissed the commander after he had shown her some kindness, but certainly with him being a templar, he must be shocked a mage kissed him. 

She couldn't stay there, she felt like such a fool. What had she done? She quickly turned and ran into the rain heading towards the keep. The rain still fell heavily and the mud made the footing slippery as made her way as quickly as possible to the keep's side entrance. Pulling the door open, she nearly fell inside before managing to push the door closed firmly behind her. She was completely soaked through and the lower part of her gown covered in mud while it was a miracle she managed to not lose a slipper in the mud. Leaning against the door, she closed her eyes a moment trying to settle her erratic breathing. She stood there catching her breath and assessing her appearance before being startled by one of her companions. 

"Inquisitor?" The woman's voice made Laela nearly jump out of her skin. Vivienne watched her with a mixture of surprise and disbelief. "Are you alright my dear, you look positively dreadful."

Straightening herself up, she looked over at the beautifully attired and regal mage. Embarrassed, Laela nodded, "Yes, I was unfortunate enough to find myself caught out in the rain." 

Quirking an eyebrow at the Inquisitor, Vivienne shook her head disapprovingly at the mage's state. "That is putting it mildly." 

"I-I think I'll retire for the evening." Nodding at Vivienne, she quickly ducked her head down as she passed her and walked quickly to her room. Vivienne stood there watching the Inquisitor leave while wondering why she appeared to be out of sorts, it was very uncharacteristic of the mage. What was the woman doing out on a night like this? As she turned to leave, Vivienne heard the outer door open once more causing her to turn around to see who it was. She was surprised to see it was the Commander. He too appeared soaked through and muddied, though he didn't stop to talk as he dipped his head courteously in silent acknowledgement to her before he headed down the hallway in a brisk manner. She raised her eyebrows at that. She noticed something in his hand catch the light, but she couldn't tell what it was before he was out of sight. Whatever transpired this night between those two she had no idea, but she planned to find out one way or another.


End file.
